SailHub: An End-to-End Solution for the Tailoring Industry!

Role

Product Designer

Project duration

6 weeks

Tools

Figma, Pencil&Paper, Chatgpt, Miro

About Sailhub

Every project begins with a problem that needs solving. For me, it was this: Talented tailors in India struggle to showcase their skills and connect with clients due to limited digital platforms. As a result, both tailors and users seeking custom clothing and alterations miss out on valuable opportunities.

Currently, there’s no dedicated app where tailors can present their work, offer live tutorials, or chat directly with clients.

That’s when I decided to create Sailhub, a Web app designed to:

Enable tailors to showcase their expertise and present their portfolios to a wider audience.
Offer live tutorials and learning resources for aspiring tailors.
Help users easily find, book, and communicate with local tailors for custom clothing and alterations.

That’s when I decided to create Sailhub, a Web app designed to:

Enable tailors to showcase their expertise and present their portfolios to a wider audience.
Offer live tutorials and learning resources for aspiring tailors.
Help users easily find, book, and communicate with local tailors for custom clothing and alterations.

Why This Project?

I wanted to:

Solve a real-world problem that affects both tailors and users.
Explore the untapped potential of the tailoring industry in India.
Make life easier for both local tailors and users looking for custom solutions.

I wanted to:

Solve a real-world problem that affects both tailors and users.
Explore the untapped potential of the tailoring industry in India.
Make life easier for both local tailors and users looking for custom solutions.

Solutions

Problem Statement

In India, talented tailors struggle to showcase their skills and connect with clients due to limited digital platforms. This results in missed opportunities for both tailors and users looking for custom clothing and alterations.

Currently, there’s no dedicated app that allows tailors to present their work, offer live tutorials, or chat with clients. Tailors are missing out on a market worth ₹240,000 annually in a single town, potentially growing to ₹1.7 crore across multiple towns.

This platform aims to bridge this gap, enabling tailors to showcase their expertise, manage clients, and provide learning resources for aspiring tailors. Additionally, it will help users easily find, book, and communicate with local tailors for their custom needs.

Target User

The target users for the app include tailors seeking to showcase their skills, customers looking for custom clothing services, fashion enthusiasts wanting to learn, boutique owners needing reliable tailors, local event planners seeking custom outfits, and community organizations promoting local artisans.

USER RESEARCH

Research Approach

Understanding the people who’d use this platform was key. Here’s what I did:

Coming from a small town where tailoring is a thriving skill, I’ve always been fascinated by custom clothing. Frequent visits to tailors gave me firsthand insights into their behavior, thought processes, and challenges. This personal connection, combined with additional online research, shaped my understanding of their mental models.

Market Analysis

To deepen my knowledge, I performed competitive research on existing platforms. Through this, I identified gaps and opportunities for a tailored digital platform.

SWOT Analysis

I also conducted SWOT analysis to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of the platform, ensuring we understand how to improve and where we stand in the market.

Understanding Features of Existing Platforms and Market Positioning Analysis

I analyzed similar platforms to learn what works well and what could be improved for a seamless user experience.
I studied the market to understand where our platform fits and how we can target the right audience effectively.

I analyzed similar platforms to learn what works well and what could be improved for a seamless user experience.
I studied the market to understand where our platform fits and how we can target the right audience effectively.

In the Spotlight

To gain insights into the challenges, trends, and opportunities tailors in India are experiencing, directly from expert perspectives.
To stay updated on how tailoring businesses in India are adapting to digital platforms and evolving customer demands.

To gain insights into the challenges, trends, and opportunities tailors in India are experiencing, directly from expert perspectives.
To stay updated on how tailoring businesses in India are adapting to digital platforms and evolving customer demands.

User Persona

Based on my research, I created these personas:

Information Architecture

Every idea starts somewhere, and for me, it always begins with pencil and paper. I believe sketching my thoughts on paper first gives me the freedom to think creatively without any limitations.

Paper First:

I started by jotting down ideas and sketching the structure of the platform on paper. This helped me visualize the app’s layout and refine it without distractions.

Digital Next:

Once I had clarity, I created a digital version of the Information Architecture. This structured approach ensured that:

Users could easily navigate the platform.
The app’s features were logically grouped and accessible.

Once I had clarity, I created a digital version of the Information Architecture. This structured approach ensured that:

Users could easily navigate the platform.
The app’s features were logically grouped and accessible.

User flow

To ensure the platform is intuitive and user-friendly, I designed three key user flows that cater to the main needs of users. These flows were carefully thought out to make the experience as smooth and convenient as possible.

User Flow #1

User Flow #2

User Flow #3

Storyboarding User Flows

Storyboarding of User Flows

To visualize how users interact with the platform, I created storyboards for the three key user flows:

Tailor Profile Setup: Tailors showcase their skills and work through an easy onboarding process.
Finding and Booking a Tailor: Users search, explore tailor profiles, and book services seamlessly.
Learning Through Tutorials: Aspiring tailors discover, enroll in, and learn from engaging tutorials.

Design

Pencil&Paper Design's

I began the design process by sketching wireframes with pencil and paper.

Digital Designs

Once I had a clear idea of the structure and layout, I moved on to creating digital wireframes to refine the details.

Testing the Initial Prototype

To ensure the interface was easy to understand, I tested the low-fidelity prototype with two of my aunts and one cousin. The feedback was positive—they found the interface intuitive and easy to navigate. However, they pointed out that the prototype wasn’t fully clickable, which limited their experience during testing.

Refining and Testing the Hi-Fi Prototype

After creating the high-fidelity mockups and prototype, I conducted a second round of user testing. This time, I shared the prototype in a community post and asked users to complete specific activities and share their feedback. The response was overwhelming, providing valuable insights to further refine the design.

Usability Testing

User Testing Report

Key Finding's from Usability Testing

Users suggested adding an email login option, as relying only on phone numbers can be inconvenient for frequent travelers.
Including currency details (e.g., "$2000") would make financial information clearer.
The switching feature was appreciated, but prompts could be improved by using clear statements like "Set up a business," "Explore services," or "Learn to tailor."
Page titles like "Appointments" should replace the app name "SailHub" for better clarity.
Adding a "Contact Us" feature would make it easier for users to reach out for support.

Users suggested adding an email login option, as relying only on phone numbers can be inconvenient for frequent travelers.
Including currency details (e.g., "$2000") would make financial information clearer.
The switching feature was appreciated, but prompts could be improved by using clear statements like "Set up a business," "Explore services," or "Learn to tailor."
Page titles like "Appointments" should replace the app name "SailHub" for better clarity.
Adding a "Contact Us" feature would make it easier for users to reach out for support.

Interactive Prototype

What I learned🌱

Adapting to Constraints: Initially, I couldn’t conduct interviews, so I focused on usability testing to understand users better—a valuable skill for problem-solving in challenging situations.

End-to-End Experience: This was my first complete project, and I learned the importance of thorough market research to validate assumptions.

Feedback Matters: Gathering feedback from multiple sources helped refine ideas and confirm hypotheses.

Balancing Creativity and Practicality: I learned to balance creative ideas with practical implementation, like simplifying flows for better accessibility.